Four Terry College of Business Alumni Honored at 2005 Awards Luncheon in Atlanta

Author: Jim Kvicala

Contact: Marie Garrison

Published May 5, 2005

ATHENS, Ga. — Four eminent members of Georgia's business community were honored with alumni awards from the University of Georgia's Terry College of Business on Thursday, May 5, in Atlanta.

Three of the graduates — Bob Hatcher of Macon, Joe Spence of Atlanta and Scott Voynich of Columbus — were honored for their career achievements and community leadership with the college's Distinguished Alumni Award. Jennifer Lackey Barber of Woodstock was presented the college's Outstanding Young Alumni Award.

The Terry College has been presenting its alumni awards since 1964. This year's awards were presented at the college's annual spring luncheon, held at Maggiano's restaurant in Buckhead.

DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI AWARDS

Robert F. Hatcher, president and CEO of MidCountry Financial Corp. in Macon, Ga., received his bachelor's degree in finance from the Terry College in 1964 and graduated from the School of Banking of the South at Louisiana State University in 1975. Hatcher spent 27 years with Trust Company Bank (now SunTrust Banks). He was president and CEO of First Liberty Bank from 1988 until its merger with BB&T in 2000 and remains a member of BB&T's board of directors.

Hatcher helped co-found the Leadership Macon community leadership program in 1979 and founded Leadership USA in 1993, serving as its chairman until 1997. He currently serves on the board of the Vail Leadership Institute and as co-chairman of Gov. Sonny Perdue's Commission for a New Georgia.

Hatcher's civic involvement includes membership for the past 14 years on the board of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce. He has served on the chamber's executive board since 1994 and as its chairman in 2002. His community service to the Macon and middle Georgia area includes serving terms as chairman of the boards of the Greater Macon Chamber of Commerce, the Macon Economic Development Commission, the Macon-Bibb County Urban Development Authority and the Community Foundation of Central Georgia. He is a trustee of Mercer University and the Macon State College Foundation.

Joseph T. Spence Jr. served as managing director of Russell Reynolds Associates in Atlanta, specializing in recruiting CEOs and senior corporate officers, as well as outside directors for the boards of major corporations. He retired last December. Spence earned his bachelor's degree in finance from the Terry College in 1965. Prior to joining Russell Reynolds, Spence had a 20-year career with Trust Company of Georgia (now SunTrust Bank). He headed the bank's Southeastern Corporate Banking Division and later the National Corporate Banking Division. He also spent three years as president and CEO of Trust Company's mortgage banking subsidiary.

Spence's civic involvement includes serving as a trustee of the J. Bulow Campbell Foundation and working with the United Way of Atlanta, Junior Achievement and the Salvation Army. He is a member of the University of Georgia's Gridiron Society and the Greek Horsemen.

S. Scott Voynich, managing partner of Robinson Grimes and Co. P.C. in Columbus, Ga., earned his bachelor's degree in accounting from the Terry College in 1975. Voynich is the immediate past chairman of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, a national association whose membership includes more than 350,000 CPAs. He is the only Georgian ever elected to that position. He also has served in a variety of capacities within the AICPA, including membership on its national board of directors.

From 1994 to 1995, he served as president of the Georgia Society of CPAs. His community involvement includes serving on the local board of the American Heart Association, as a member of the Homebuilders Association of Columbus, as vice chair of the Columbus Building Authority and as a member of the Chamber of Commerce Leadership Columbus Alumni.

OUTSTANDING YOUNG ALUMNI AWARD

Jennifer Lackey Barber of Barber Lackey Financial Group LLC earned her bachelor's degree in marketing from the Terry College in 1991. A certified financial planner and a Life Underwriters Training Council Fellow, Barber and her husband, Glen, along with her brother, Thomas Lackey Jr., started their own firm, located in Dunwoody, Ga., in 1999. Before that, Barber spent eight years working for AXA Financial Inc. (formerly Equitable Life).

She is a past president of the Atlanta Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors and a board member for the Georgia Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors. Her community service includes volunteer work for the Brain Tumor Foundation for Children, Canine Assistants, The Link Counseling Center of Atlanta and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors honored Barber with its Robert D. Goldman Community Service Award in 2003.

The Terry College of Business Alumni Board of Directors selects the alumni award winners from nominations submitted to the board. More information on the awards criteria and nomination process is available at www.terry.uga.edu/alumni/awards/.